Articles from August 2014

New this year is a presentation format for seven culinary stations (out of a total of 30). Seven chefs will be paired with meat from a specific ranch and produce from a specific farm and they will be out on the Lagoon Lanai. These food “players” will be identified by signage at their culinary stations for attendees. Event chair Jeri Moniz says the purpose for the pairings is to foster more communication between food producers and the user of their products—chefs. We checked in with some of the partnered ranchers and chefs to get their take on the challenges of providing local beef and the benefits of using it.

Triple D Ranch with Village Burger

Antone and Duane De Luz, photos courtesy Duane De Luz

Duane De Luz of Triple D Ranch manages 600 acres between two locations: O‘okala and Honokaia (between Honoka‘a and Kukuihaele). The family operation has been committed to 100 percent grass-fed beef since it started in 1906.

Triple D typically delivers 70 steers and heifers to market annually, overseeing up to 180 animals at any one time in their grass-fed finishing program. DeLuz says they farm a variety of forage that produces well at their two locations: pangola, star and guinea grasses, plus legumes like clover and plantation peanut. The fourth generation rancher says proper pasture management and rotation of herds is key to being successful.

“While prices for wean-offs (calves) to finish on the Mainland are high, we keep ours at home,” says Duane. “By keeping our animals here, we’re feeding the local community and ensuring jobs are here to process and distribute the beef. We are happy to support our fellow local businesses.”

With the motto, “Supporting our Island Ranchers, One Hamburger at a Time,” Chef Edwin Goto of Village Burger has made

Chef Edwin Goto of Village Burger. Photo courtesy of Edwin Goto

local food sustainability the mantra at his Parker Ranch Center restaurant in Waimea. He does local in a big way by using ingredients that he can source “close to home” and listing them on the wall for hungry customers to see.

“I buy local beef because it’s in our backyard,” Goto, a long-time executive chef, explains. “It’s convenient and supports our local ranches.” He says pasture-raised beef produces burgers that are juicy and not greasy, so “you feel good after you eat them.”

Chef combines chuck and brisket to make his delicious burgers. For this year’s Taste, he’s assigned beef chuck roll to prepare and is thinking about doing something unique with it. “Maybe I’ll braise it and make a pot roast, or a unique meat loaf, perhaps with an Asian twist,” he muses.

Ponoholo Ranch is located along Kohala Mountain Road in Kapa‘au. With 11,000 acres it is the isle’s second largest ranch with range running from the mountain to the sea. The ranch generally runs a herd of 4,500 to 5,000 animals, but due to past drought, it currently has a herd of 3,000 mother cows, according to president Sabrina White.

Principally a cow-calf operation, Ponoholo ships the bulk of its animals to be finished on the Mainland. Some are finished and marketed as pasture-raised beef through the Country Natural Beef program, meaning they are fed a combination of pasture, potatoes and other natural products with no added hormones or antibiotics. Other animals are processed through the commodity beef market.

The ranch also “keeps a couple 100 head here” for finishing on grass.

“I feel pretty good to be able to provide for our local market, as long as the local market can support it,” says White, a third-generation rancher with a degree in animal science. “It has to make economic sense to keep our cattle here.”

She explains, “Beef prices on the Mainland are currently at a record high. Hawai’i needs to keep up and raise the price. We’ll support our local retailers because they are coming around to raising prices, but eventually there’s a breaking point…and then we’ll sell to the Mainland.”

Chef Allen Hess is a long-time supporter of local beef; he used it while working at Merriman’s, Alan Wong’s Hualalai Grill and Allen’s Table, and now at Mauna Lani’s CanoeHouse.

“Local beef is tasty,” he says, adding he supports efforts to continue to improve the product’s consistency in quality as he can get a good New York Strip steak and filet mignon, but has “trouble getting a good ribeye.”

During Taste, Chef Hess is assigned beef tri-tip. “I’ll beak it down (trim to get the lean meat) and make a tri tip furikake stuffed in a clear cone sushi.” Furikake is a flavorful, dry seasoning typically sprinkled on top of rice—considered the salt and pepper of Japan, it’s crunchy, salty and briny with a hint of seafood. Chef will also do a beef nacho on homemade shrimp chips.

Started 2011. Mealani provides Animal Science and Pre-Veterinary students attending UH Manoa and UH-Hilo hands-on experience in the breeding of the cow herd. Under the instruction of Dr. Ashley Stokes, the sessions cover beef cattle reproduction, genetics, semen handling and performing artificial insemination.

Pasture Rotation—Started 2005. Evaluation trials of intensive grazing techniques using approximately 250 head of cattle to best utilize nutritive values of forage while sustaining paddocks. Research involves daily rotation of separate groups of steers (market animals), heifers (young females) and cow/calves among paddocks so each group of animal is always digesting the same part of the grass stalk. Steers consume the top of the grass, which has the highest protein content, followed by heifers who eat the middle of the stalk and cow/calves, which eat the bottom and get the most fiber. Goal: To utilize forage effectively and to demonstrate the production of healthy, vigorous grass-finished beef on less acreage for efficient land utilization.

Forage Systems—Started 1987. Mealani has one of the Pacific basin’s largest collections of tropical forage grasses in investigation and demonstration gardens. They include pangola and kikuyu grasses and legume covers. Legumes, such as the perennial peanut and leucaena, fix nitrogen in the soil and help other forages grow. Mealani is experimenting with a new variety of grass in its forage garden—Stylo. Planted in March 2012, it’s a nitrogen-fixing forage that animals can graze. Mealani ag technician Marla Fergerstrom says it is drought-tolerant, can thrive in poor soil types and has been used as animal feed that has been “cut and fed.” Goal: To make different efficient tropical forages available for ranchers to plant in their pastures.

Bio-Control Moth Production—Started 2013. Mealani is cage-rearing Secusio extensa (Arctiidae) for fireweed suppression and control in pastures. In the 18 months since the inception of this effort, Mealani has distributed over 2,000 caterpillar larvae.Fireweed is an invasive plant toxic to cattle and horses. In partnership with the Hawai’i Dept. of Agriculture (HDOA), Mealani raises the moth lavae until they are a half-inch or more in length for distribution to ranchers. The lavae voraciously consume the leaves, buds and bark specifically of fireweed plants, which is estimated to have taken over more than 850,000 acres of pastureland, mainly on Hawai’i Island and Maui. The statewide Hawai‘i Cattlemen’s Council has agreed that bio-control is the only feasible, long-term option for control of fireweed. The Council funded the first exploratory trips by HDOA entomologists to southern Africa and Madagascar to search for an insect or disease that could safely control fireweed. The state approved release of the moth in 2010, with federal approval finalized in 2012. While this bio-control doesn’t eliminate fireweed, Fergerstrom says it makes the plant weak. After six months of production, Mealani has released thousands of lavae to ranchers. Distribution of the insect is done by UH’s Kamuela Cooperative Extension Office, 887-6183, or contact Mealani for more info, 887-6185.

Tea—Started 1999. Evaluation trials of one acre of tea containing 10 cultivars, plus 320 different seedlings for possible cultivar development. Research includes ag production techniques, harvest yield studies, quality control and product processing to remove plant bitterness and astringencies. Mealani provides local tea society growers with cuttings, educational workshops and tours of station planting. In 2013, CTAHR started offering Tea 101 workshops at Mealani to teach the steps of growing and hand-processing Hawaii-grown tea. Tea propagation workshops were added in 2014. Led by CTAHR Extension Economist Stuart Nakamoto and UH extension agent Randy Hamasaki, classes are geared to existing tea growers and those interested in growing and producing tea as a business. Future sessions are planned for homeowners, hobbyists and tea enthusiasts. For info, 887-6183. Goal: to develop unique Hawai‘i-grown teas.

Alternative Crops—Started in 2009. Mealani planted a small arboretum of fruit trees to test varieties requiring a “lesser chill” than the temperate-zoned U.S. Mainland. Different types of peach, Surinam and bing-type cherries, plus persimmon are under observation. Goal: To develop alternative fruit crops.

Cultivation efforts for tropical peaches were stepped up in 2014 with trials on four varieties: Tropic Snow, Tropic Sweet, Tropic Beauty and Tropic Prime. Trials are in progress at Mealani and other locations via cooperative volunteers. Mealani offered workshops on tree care that included pruning for better fruit set and techniques for achieving larger fruit size production. Goal: to get a marketable peach grown in Hawai’i

Blueberries—Started 2005. Evaluation trials in and out of hot house of 34 warm-clime varieties that don’t require a high chill. Research includes ag production, acclimatization to environment, resistances to disease (rust), pruning methods and timing for production in high-value market windows. Goal: to develop blueberries as an alternative crop for farmers.

Field Education of Culinary Students—Initiated in 2010. Mealani invites college and high school culinary students and instructors to learn about its research products—especially grass-fed beef. At field station visits, future chefs meet the individuals involved in raising the cattle and view production practices. The visits encourage interaction and foster understanding between future chefs and food producers. The vision of this program has several goals:

To educate chefs about what effort goes into the product and its benefits, so they use it.

To provide chefs with the opportunity to communicate with food producers so they better understand production challenges.

To provide food producers with the opportunity to communicate with those who use their product so they comprehend culinary expectations. It’s found that producers can do a better job if they have a relationship with the buyer.